Chapter 617: Level 19

"Bad… the formation outside has already been activated?"

After their hopes shattered, Fei Yong and the others immediately tried to flee.

But now they were horrified to discover the sect had activated the grand formation, sealing all internal and external passage.

It was clear—they intended to trap them here until death!

"This Forest All Arms Formation was set up by others—wouldn't it be normal to leave a few hidden exits?"

Fang Xing, now revealed as a Yin Spirit True Person, was the undisputed leader among these abandoned ones.

He stood with his hands behind his back, watching faint green light screens rise, a faint smile on his face.

This Forest All Arms Formation was the accumulated work of countless generations—they never expected him to usurp it.

What Fang Xing had always done was start anew!

By planting trees, he built the "Sacred Grove," crushing and replacing the original formation!

He uprooted everything in Qingmu Ridge at its foundation, then rebuilt it from scratch—naturally, he wouldn't be affected by its remnants.

"Sect of Killing… destroying everything?"

Fang Xing walked through Qingmu Ridge; faint green light clung to his body like fireflies, swirling around and occasionally sinking into the ground.

Soon, the original structures weathered and decayed—as if centuries or millennia of time had washed over them.

Vines, ancient trees, wildflowers emerged.

As if, in humanity's war against nature, humans had retreated—and nature reclaimed everything, invading the buildings and all else…

Fang Xing measured Qingmu Ridge's land with his footsteps, his trail nearly covering every inch of it.

Fei Yong and the other cultivators, bewildered, dared not disturb him—only watched nervously from the side.

"Reluctance… attachment…"

"Has this land, this nature, fully accepted me?"

Fang Xing's thoughts shifted: "The Druid's plant domain—if pushed too deep—isn't ideal…"

Right now, his instincts urged him to flee danger, yet his Druidic duty compelled him to stay, to protect this nature, this everything!

Had he not used the Divine Art of Flesh Genesis to make a backup outside, even with the finest Druidic lineage, Fang Xing would have left.

Even if nature despised him for it, so what?

He could still walk the path of the Corrupted Dark Druid!

The Druid class—how could it be so limited?

【You have received a natural baptism, gaining partial 'Natural Knowledge'…】

As Fang Xing deepened his contact with nature, prompts kept appearing in his status bar.

Perhaps days passed. Perhaps months.

His status bar trembled—a new prompt appeared:

【Your Druid class has advanced to Level 19! Talent acquired—'Nature's Wrath'!】

【Nature's Wrath—You may mark an enemy as an enemy of nature, subjecting them to nature's fury!】

"Nature's Wrath? A kind of grand natural ritual, then."

Fang Xing sighed.

Nature itself is terrifying—its wrath can be storms, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, even earthquakes…

If the marked "enemy of nature" merely bears the label, the natural fury it endures is mild.

But if it truly commits acts of destruction against nature, and is then marked, the fury grows ever more terrible—until it reaches the level of "Heaven's Punishment Thunder Tribulation."

"Finally… Level 19."

"Too bad… I still don't have enough time to reach Level 20."

Fang Xing sighed, glancing at his status bar:

【Name: Fang Xing】

【Age: 106/4379】

【Class: Druid Level 19】

【Realm: Yin Spirit Mid-Stage】

【Talents: Natural Affinity, Wild Shape, Plant Growth, Toxin Immunity, Eternal Youth, Thorned Skin, Barkskin, Natural Healing, Awaken Tree Person, Shepherd of Trees, Toughness, Combat Casting, Enlightenment, Regeneration, Ageless Body, Nature Summon, Advanced Natural Healing, Nature's Wrath】

【Skills: Perfect Hands (Master 800/800), Origami Art (Master 800/800), Beast Taming Art (Master 800/800), Qi Concealment Art (Master 800/800), Mind Confusion Art (Master 800/800)】

…

"Oh? So my Yin Spirit cultivation is advancing too?"

Fang Xing now possessed the true transmission of Qingmu Ridge. Though the core scriptures had been taken, he only needed the foundational techniques.

The path beyond Yin Spirit True Person was now completely clear.

Thus, his cultivation faced no stagnation—he broke through the minor realm with a single thought.

"Yin Spirit True Person cultivation is simple: just transform Yin Spirit into pure Yang. Once even a trace of Yang emerges, you break through to Yang Spirit True Lord—then you refine Yang Spirit endlessly until it becomes indistinguishable from your flesh body…"

"Still, these cultivation paths feel incomplete… as if designed to turn practitioners into spirit-worship deities."

Whether Yin Spirit or Yang Spirit, once granted imperial recognition, transformation into a terrestrial deity proceeds smoothly.

Of course, even foundation-establishing, qi-sensing, or ordinary mortals can be enfeoffed—though the transformation is harder and the power gained meager.

"These great sects claim to be 'Ancient Dao Lineages,' yet after Yang Spirit, their paths feel unfinished…"

Fang Xing had heard whispers: Yang Spirit True Lords held high status in the Zhou Shenchao, capable of founding sects and becoming patriarchs.

Yet they all bowed humbly to the Shenchao, willingly serving as hounds—just to receive imperial grants and enfeoffments…

They could be instantly elevated to become semi-divine beings of the mortal realm!

This was the peak of mortal power—beyond it, one could no longer exist in the mortal realm and must ascend to the Heavenly Court. 'So these so-called Ancient Dao Lineages have no real future.'

After decades, centuries, even nearly a millennium of ascetic practice—still less than a single imperial grant? A single divine favor from a true god?

Faint green lights, like starlight, swirled around Fang Xing.

He floated upward, like a green sun.

A green great sun enveloped Qingmu Ridge; the evergreen trees he had planted suddenly began to grow wildly.

Those century-old spirit trees instantly surpassed a millennium.

Many ancient trees became ten-thousand-year-old!

Especially toward Qingyu Courtyard—a colossal ancient tree rose skyward, its canopy blotting out sun and sky, covering the entire valley.

"This…"

Fei Yong and the others stared at each other, utterly baffled by what had happened.

"Sacred Grove—Nature's Barrier!"

Fang Xing, using his upgraded Natural Affinity and Nature Perception, instantly sensed every evergreen tree in Qingmu Ridge.

Not one root, one branch, one leaf, one detail escaped him!

Countless roots plunged deep into the earth veins, crushing like constrictors every formation flag, formation disc, and large formation artifact into dust.

A vibrant emerald-green barrier surged skyward.

Where it passed, the original "Forest All Arms Formation" shattered like soap bubbles.

His status bar displayed row after row of prompts:

【You have constructed the 'Sacred Grove.' Within its range, all living beings are affected as follows!】

【One: Nature's Barrier! Two: Anti-Magic Zone! Three: Elemental Perception…】

【You are within the 'Sacred Grove'—your mana recovery speed increases by 1000%! You gain additional spellcasting capacity! Your summoned nature allies receive extra bonuses…】

【You have gained communion with the Four Elemental Forces!】

…

A flood of prompts cascaded down.

"No wonder it's called the 'Sacred Grove'—boosts self, weakens enemies…"

Fang Xing felt the so-called "Four Elemental Forces": "According to Druid lore, the Four Elements are 'Earth, Fire, Wind, Water'—now that I've communed with them, I'm proficient in all four schools? Not just casually summoning fireballs or water blasts—even storms and earthquakes are possible…"

"With my current power, I can rival a Yang Spirit True Lord."

"But Yang Spirit Late Stage? Let me first observe it."

Fang Xing gazed outward.

Fei Yong and the other cultivators had long been stunned by this sudden change.

"The Forest All Arms Formation… broken?"

"Hah! My grandfather was indeed prepared."

Fei Yong laughed loudly—then saw dozens of paper cranes flying in.

These paper cranes were used by cultivators to transmit messages; previously blocked by the Forest All Arms Formation.

Now they poured in—after all, these cultivators had families, friends, loved ones.

Once the messages arrived, cries of shock erupted: "What? The Corpse Controlling Sect has been wiped out?"

"Worse—the Sect of Killing has reached Yunlai Market… soon, they'll sweep Qingmu Ridge!"

Fei Yong hurried to Fang Xing as he descended: "Grandmaster Fang… what do we do?"

"Soldiers come, we meet them with soldiers; water comes, we block it with earth. If any of you wish to leave, go now."

Fang Xing waved his hand to the disciples.

"This…"

Several cultivators exchanged glances, then immediately turned and left.

People might be fearless when driven by passion, but after days of living in constant fear, waiting for death, they simply could no longer accept it.

Now that a path to survival has suddenly appeared, of course they chose to flee.

Fang Xing paid it no mind.

He whistled, and a green jade beetle he had bred himself materialized.

Its body, as large as a millstone, instantly shrank to the size of a fist.

He still greatly favored this demonic insect, even choosing it as one of his Wild Transformation forms.

But after ascending to the Yin Spirit True Person realm, his Master-level Beast Taming Art gained a new branch.

At this moment, a strand of Fang Xing's Yin Spirit directly attached itself to the green jade beetle, causing its form to turn ethereal as it soared into the sky.

'This method of possession is safer than transforming myself to scout…'

Fang Xing now had two perspectives. Focusing on the beetle's view, he saw several battles unfolding beyond Qingmu Ridge.

One side of the battles was naturally the cultivators who had just chosen to flee.

'Even the Qingmu Ancestor needed cover to leave before—now you're trying to escape… isn't the outside world already a wall of bronze and iron?'

Fang Xing sneered, then spotted the Kill-Sect Vanguard in action.

They operated in squads, each containing archers, black-armored Guardian Soldiers, and black-robed priests—all seemingly only at the Sensing Qi stage, yet effortlessly slaying Foundation Establishment cultivators…

(End of Chapter)